A Fiercer Storm
by Janiqua
Summary: They were inevitably destined to oppose each other. But when was it, exactly, that their opposition turned to all out hatred? Sheppard Vs. Kolya. Kolya Vs. Sheppard. The Storm. The Eye.
1. John Sheppard

**Author's Note:** I just recently watched the Season Three episode "Irresponsible," which got me to thinking about how the famous enmity between Sheppard and Kolya got started in the first place. I know it's an early episode, and it's more fun to watch, but I nevertheless felt compelled to write it out. Of course I'm naturally longing to hear some reviews, so let me know what you think! Thanks so much!

**Warning: **Spoilers for "The Storm," and "The Eye."

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Stargate Atlantis or any of its characters. Enjoy!

**A Fiercer Tempest**

It was getting colder by the second. Sheppard had spent a decent amount of time flying helicopters around in Antarctica, and though this was nothing compared to that, it was still uncomfortably frigid… And the fact that he had just killed two Genii soldiers certainly didn't help matters any; his blood had turned to ice.

Holding up the radio, he turned away from the panel and stared out across the turbulent sea. The wind alone was intimidating, and he could definitely see the oncoming storm. It was like nothing he'd ever seen before – it was large enough to hit an entire continent. In fact, it was going to hit an entire continent. At that particular moment, however, he was willing to wager an entire year's pay that it wasn't going to be half as monstrous as the tempest presently raging inside the city's walls.

He held up the radio. "Let me tell you what you did wrong here, Kolya. A. You lost two of your men." _Just like we lost two of ours…_ "B. You damaged the switch before I could separate the grounding rods, which I'm sure you're gonna get an earful from McKay for…" _Don't be too cocky about that, though, John. If we get outta this, you're gonna get one, too. _"And C. You lost all of what little credibility you had with me."

No time to reflect on that one. He could hear McKay in the background, and the man understandably did not sound happy. "D'you have any idea of how big a setback that is? I may not even be able to activate the shield. I mean, I can't possibly…" Sheppard grimaced at the scientist's sudden exclamation of pain. What was going on up there? "Get off me!"

"You killed two of my men," Kolya's voice was as hard and as cold as the ice in Antarctica. He did not sound at all pleased, and Sheppard couldn't blame him. After all, he wasn't pleased either.

"I guess we're even!"

"I don't like even."

Sheppard didn't like the sound of that. His heart slowly started speeding up as instinct warned him the tempest within Atlantis was about to reach its climax. "I'm not finished yet!" Best to keep the man talking before he did something-

"Neither am I," Kolya assured him with a fury hidden beneath a frighteningly calm tone. "Say goodbye to Dr. Weir."

_Hell no…_

"The city has a self-destruct button," Sheppard quickly yelled into the radio, before he had time to think about his words. "You hurt her, I'll activate it. Nobody'll get Atlantis."

Kolya wasn't stupid. The threat was Sheppard's last card, and it was a frantic, futile one. The Major could hear a bit of sick triumph in the Commander's response. "Even if it exists, Major, you need at least two senior personnel to activate it – and I'm about to take one of them out of the equation."

Breathing suddenly became an unwelcome challenge. "Kolya?" The man did not answer. Sheppard forced himself to fight off panic. "KOLYA?" Nothing. Desperation ate at his stomach. "I'll give you a ship!" The wind was extremely violent, and Sheppard had to shout just to hear himself think. He did not like the way it made him sound… completely helpless. "I'll fly it out of here for you myself!" The continued, obstinate silence was maddening. "KOLYA!"

It was starting to rain. The drops reminded him of drums pounding at a procession leading towards someone's execution. Elizabeth's execution. "Kolya! Kolya, don't do this!" Was the man even listening to him? Considering the lack of any response whatsoever, Sheppard had ever right to assume his pleas weren't being heard. Unfortunately, he couldn't think of anything else to do but beg. He was too far away… It would take a hell of a lot more than a mere "brisk pace" to reach her… and by then it would be too late.

The radio had been disconnected. The rain was growing fierce… drumbeats were turning into needle sized daggers piercing his face. There might have been Genii heading towards him now, but not even that was motivation enough for him to move the slightest inch. Let them come. He'd kill every last one of them.

_"Me, um, I like, uh, Ferris Wheels and, uh, college football; anything that goes more than two hundred miles per hour."_

Funny. His world at that exact moment felt like it was spinning, much like a Ferris Wheel, and _much _faster than two hundred mph. But, for the first time, it was not like the exhilaration he'd grown to so appreciate. Instead, it made him feel nauseas.

He had no idea how long he stood there, silent and motionless, holding his breath, waiting… waiting… Damn, he hated waiting! A minute passed. Then five… Maybe ten?

The radio suddenly crackled back on. "Major Sheppard…"

He stared down at it as if it were one of those damn Iratus bugs. Kolya sounded quiet. Somber. It caused several chills to run down Sheppard's spine. He definitely preferred frustration and anger over solemnity.

"How's this for credibility? Weir is dead."

_Weir is dead._

_Weir is dead._

_Weir is dead._

Three words. Three simple words was all it took to snuff out what little was left of Sheppard's tolerance. Furiously ignoring the pain and grief that threatened to pour over and consume him, he instead surrendered to a thirst for blood the likes of which he'd never experienced before and hoped never to experience again. "I… am going… to kill you."

"Maybe," Kolya acknowledged calmly. Indifferently. He'd just taken Elizabeth's life, and he sounded like he couldn't care less. What kind of monster was he? Would he be fierce enough to resist the monster that was presently scratching and clawing and ripping and tearing its way to the Major's surface right now? Not likely. "Stay out of my way." A pause… "Or McKay will join her."

It was too late for a threat like that. Of course Sheppard didn't want McKay to die, but there was hell to pay, and in light of recent setbacks, Atlantis probably wasn't going to survive the storm anyway. They were all going to die. Every last, single one of them. They would all die, but Sheppard would be damned if he didn't make Kolya suffer as much as possible for what he'd done. He'd make Kolya regret just looking at Elizabeth. Hell, he'd make Kolya regret the very day he'd been born!

Setting his jaw furiously, resolutely, Sheppard turned and made his way out of the Grounding Station.

**ooooooo**

Three more were dead.

The generator powering the control room had been disabled.

Much of the city was blanketed in a darkness that mirrored the shadows in Sheppard's heart. Outwardly, he was as cool and as collected as any clear thinking soldier on the battlefield. It almost felt like he was hunting. Hunting. That was a good word for it. There was plenty of prey to be stalked, and Kolya was still at the top of his list. He'd pay.

There was a transporter just up ahead. Sheppard made for it, listening silently to what was being said over the radio.

"Can you still track Sheppard?"

_Fat load of good it did them even when they could._

"No…"

"Then we have no idea where he is now." Kolya was outside. Sheppard could hear the wind and rain, as well as the surging sea. He stepped onto the transporter. "Is the control room secure?"

"Yes, Commander," the girl, Sora, replied. "I suggest we send some men to guard the remaining generators." _That's it…_

"No," Kolya responded quickly. "He's trying to divide us into manageable numbers." The man certainly wasn't stupid. Sheppard found himself wondering what his faceless enemy actually looked like. He was quick. He was strong. And Sheppard wanted to mutilate him. "Just close Stargate operations until the reinforcements arrive."

_Reinforcements?_ Sheppard paused, chewing on that bit of information. There was still a handful of Genii left over and only one of him. It was actually kind of flattering to think that Kolya felt it necessary to send for backup. Not that he was going to get it, or anything. Sheppard simply was not about to allow anymore of those damn Genii to set foot inside his city. He wasn't in the mood for it.

Kolya was outside. No doubt he'd taken McKay to the Grounding Station for one final attempt to save the city before the storm hit in full swing. First thing's first. No one was going to get out of there alive. Atlantis had to be destroyed, which meant McKay had to be stopped. Sheppard knew what to do.

**ooooooo**

It didn't take long at all for him to find and disable the generator powering the third Grounding Station. Without power, McKay couldn't fix anything. Now that that was out of the way, Sheppard found himself heading towards the control room. If reinforcements were coming, and he knew without a doubt that they were, he wouldn't stand a chance at killing Kolya. Fortunately enough, he had the home court advantage here, and he meant to use every inch of it.

The corridors leading into the control room were all covered in darkness. Under such a mask, Sheppard watched and waited as the few remaining Genii anticipated the imminent arrival of their comrades. There would be more than sixty… He couldn't kill sixty men by himself, and so he found himself weighing options that, on any other day, would have thoroughly disgusted him.

"It was supposed to be a raid to retrieve what was rightfully ours," Sora spoke coldly to the Genii scientist, Laden. Well, Sheppard thought, what had started out as a "raid" was quickly turning into an all-out war. A war that he had no intention of losing, by the way. He was determined to use any and all means necessary to keep Atlantis out of the hands of the Genii. And at the same time… He still felt thirsty for blood. He'd always been driven by passion – to save his friends' lives, he'd disobeyed a direct order, earning a black mark on his record. He'd probably earn another one for this, but he didn't care. Kolya killed Elizabeth…

_"You killed two of my men."_

_"I guess we're even!"_

_"I don't like even."_

Well then, he probably wasn't going to like this one bit. The gate started activating. Sheppard steadied himself, watching as Sora led the two other guards out of the control room and towards the Stargate. Only Laden was left…

He was standing at the balcony, speaking into a radio as two Genii stepped through event horizon. "Reinforcements are arriving now, Commander." They had to be stopped. Sheppard crept forward, listening intently to Kolya's response.

"Have them secure Stargate operations and report back to me."

"Yes, Commander." Laden turned around, but by the point it was too late. Sheppard was upon him, and in a single swift move, he knocked the scientist unconscious. The man didn't even have time to shout out a warning.

Something in the Major's stomach twisted and tightened painfully. This was merciless. This was brutal. This was not, in any sense of the word, honorable. They were expecting more than sixty men… Sixty… With a few keystrokes, he could wipe them all out of existence. It suddenly felt sickening, and Sheppard hesitated. Was he that savage?

Of course he was. The thirst for it was much too strong. He had begged Kolya for Elizabeth's life. And Kolya hadn't listened. He hadn't even answered. They were both about to taste vengeance. Hastening over to the controls, Sheppard immediately activated the shield. Only three other men had managed to make it through, giving the Genii a total of five new men to back them up. Having already killed five, Sheppard knew without a doubt in his mind that he could take care of them as well.

Presently, panic was beginning to ensue. Men started shouting as they realized the implications of a raised shield. Bodies could be heard pounding against the back of it, and Sora started shrieking for Laden to shut it off. Glancing into the gateroom from the balcony on which he stood above, Sheppard made eye-contact with the girl. When she perceived him, he recognized her fear and her fury. "STOP HIM!"

"UP THERE!"

Sheppard squeezed his weapon's trigger, and bullets wildly rained down on the Genii. They fired back at him, but he was already on the run. He could see reflections of the flashing shield on the walls around him, and he could still hear it. The sound of fifty five men slamming up against the shield… the sound of fifty five men… dying. Sora was screaming. The remaining Genii were still firing their guns. But Sheppard left them all behind as he rounded a corner and disappeared down a darkened corridor.

**ooooooo**

There were only a few left. Sheppard would take them out quickly so he could then quickly proceed to his ultimate quarry. It was time to end this.

Presently, an unsuspecting Genii made his way down one of the city's long, winding corridors. Sheppard watched him soundlessly, waiting for a good, clean shot… but then his radio came crackling back to life.

"Major Sheppard, I have a proposition for you."

He turned his head slightly towards the sound of Kolya's voice, frustration sending waves of tension through his body. Luckily, the Genii he was hunting didn't seem to have heard his Commander's voice, and Sheppard would like to keep it that way. Spinning around, he hastened down the corridor towards the stairs.

By now Kolya would have heard about the massacre. And as the Major descended down the steps, he failed to keep the contempt out of his voice. "Kolya, I'm having a hard time keeping up… what's the score again?" The damn bastard had killed Elizabeth merely because he didn't like the fact that they'd been "even." Well, he could kill McKay if he pleased, but there wasn't a snowball's chance in hell he'd be able to even the score now. Disturbingly enough, Sheppard felt a sick kind of satisfaction flow through his veins as he rubbed that little fact in.

Amazingly enough, however, Kolya had the restraint to ignore his jibe. "My men have informed me that, not only have you disabled some crucial generators, but you've stolen key components that make it impossible to be restored."

"Yeah, I did that," Sheppard continued down the stairs. There were several flights, and he wanted to put as much distance between him and any of the Genii that might overhear this little conversation and start shooting at him as he could.

"There are two flaws in your plan."

Sheppard felt a moment's déjà vu sweep through him. Not too long ago, he'd been the one pointing out Kolya's mistakes over the radio. "Always open to constructive criticism." He could hear the ridicule in his voice. Knowing exactly what he was doing, it sounded absurd to him that Kolya might suggest otherwise.

But, amazingly enough, that was exactly what he did. "One. The assumption that I would believe you would rather destroy the city than let it fall to us is childish."

Funny. That was _precisely_ what he would rather have happen. Childish, was it? "Doesn't sound like me." Even if it was, the Genii ultimately would fail to protect the city from the Wraith. And if the Wraith got Atlantis, they'd no doubt be able to get to Earth. Kolya thought he knew Sheppard. But Kolya didn't know anything.

"Second," he nevertheless went right on, as if he did. "If and when I determine Atlantis unsalvageable, Doctors Weir and McKay become obsolete."

A giant sledgehammer could not have slammed harder into Sheppard's gut than that last sentence did. He stopped short, momentarily incapacitated as shock tore its way through his entire body. "Weir's alive?"

He thought he could hear Kolya smirking on the other end. "Dr. McKay was able to make a strong case for keeping her alive." _McKay…_ Sheppard could not think of a time when he'd ever been more grateful to the scientist for his quick tongue.

"Let me talk to her." If Kolya was lying…

But he wasn't.

"Sheppard!" Elizabeth sounded strained. She had to yell over the wind outside, and her voice was trembling slightly, but other than that… "We're both here!"

Sheppard could not describe the relief that coursed through him, easing all his tension and lightening his heart considerably. "It's good to hear your voice."

"Yeah, it's good to hear," she agreed, trying to sound calm and unafraid. She was doing a fairly good job at it, too. Diplomats…

"We have less than one hour until the storm hits full force," Kolya informed him, interrupting. "If the power is not returned to Grounding Station Three within the next ten minutes, Dr. Weir dies."

"Again, you mean?" Egging this guy on probably wasn't the wisest idea, but Kolya really had lost all his credibility. Sheppard no longer felt even the slightest respect for the man.

"Her death will buy you another ten minutes," Kolya ignored the Major's insolence, tolerating it only because he no doubt felt like he was still in control of the situation. Unfortunately, now that Sheppard knew Elizabeth was alive, he really was once again at the Genii's disposal. Atlantis might be going down, and everyone there with it, but he did not want to risk feeling that sense of loss a second time in one night. And so, he listened attentively to Kolya's every word. "After which, should the power still be out, Dr. McKay dies. We will then leave with what we can, and the city will be destroyed."

Ten minutes… "Well, that's not enough time!" God help him if he started to sound like Rodney!

It was Kolya's turn to sound smug. "If you don't mind destroying Atlantis, stay where you are for the next twenty minutes. Starting now."

Sheppard ran. Just ten minutes… He ran as quickly as he possibly could. It wouldn't be enough time… Two hundred miles per hour, and it still wouldn't be enough time… He couldn't hesitate. He couldn't blink. He needed to get back to that generator. Now!

**ooooooo**

Would this day ever end? No. Scratch that. Would this _storm_ ever end? Strong, lasting endurance and a healthy dose of adrenaline kept him on his feet, but he was longing for a bit of a break. After reaching the generator, Sheppard had been held at gunpoint by two damn Genii. Fortunately, Ford, Beckett, and Teyla had arrived shortly thereafter, saving his ass, while allowing him to restore the generators before Kolya carried out his threat. Time seemed to be on his side, but despite that, it was still moving much too fast, and they were running out of it.

The storm outside was about to reach the city… but before it did, the storm inside would have to reach an end if any of them were going to live; Sheppard was giving survival a second chance. Now that his team was here, anything felt possible. Absolutely anything. But the problem was, saving the city meant turning it into a deathtrap. The corridors would be surging with electricity to power up the shields, and the only safe place to be would therefore have a population made up entirely of Genii. A fight would definitely be inevitable… and to the death. What they needed was a plan. A good plan. And Sheppard had one… or at least he thought he did.

They'd split up. Teyla and Beckett had returned to the Jumpers, and were supposed to land one in the gateroom in order to cause enough of a distraction for Sheppard and Ford to take back the control room. Foolproof. So why weren't they here yet?

"Teyla and Beckett should easily have made it back to the Jumper Bay first," Ford quietly observed as he and Sheppard both hid beneath the stairs leading up to the control room. "They should have been waiting for us."

_Where were they?_ Sheppard held up his radio. "Teyla, what's your position?" There wasn't any answer. There were never any answers! Sheppard was getting sick and tired of radios! "Teyla?" Why had he honestly thought that this would be any easier with his team present? Why?

The storm was getting closer. Louder. _"Shoot to kill." _That had been Sheppard's advice to Ford. Elizabeth was still alive, but even now he found himself lacking in the forgiveness department. Kolya had crossed a line. And now Teyla wasn't responding…

"Sir…"

The Stargate was being dialed, and Sheppard didn't need Ford's warning to notice. Genii soldiers were hastening towards the stretchers some of them had snuck in on under the guise of injury, most of which were now bearing medical supplies and other such equipment. Beckett sure would hate to lose those… As Sheppard watched, the soldiers lifted up the stretchers and started carrying them towards the gate. One of them, he noticed, was the scientist, Laden. They didn't have time for this! Where was Teyla?

"Change of plan," he quietly told the Lieutenant beside him before hastening through the shadowy corridor along the side of the gateroom until he came to an entrance with a better vantage point. Ford was still close enough to hear his commands, but now they wouldn't be such an easy target for the Genii to shoot at. "You got McKay." He'd get Elizabeth. Make sure she was safe. And then he'd get Kolya. Make sure he got killed.

"SERIOUSLY, THIS IS A BAD IDEA!" McKay was shouting at the top of his lungs as several guards urged him at gunpoint down the stairs from the control room. Of course they'd be taken prisoner. Sheppard should have known that. The moment they walked past him, however, he open fired, shooting one in the back.

Chaos immediately ensued. Taking advantage of his captors' plight, McKay ducked low and scrambled towards Ford, who had leapt out of the shadows to help him. Elizabeth, however, barely had time to so much as turn her head before one powerful looking man caught hold of her around her waist.

Diving into a forward roll, Sheppard continued to fire, hitting another Genii square in the chest. A couple managed to make it through the gate, but the man gripping Elizabeth held back. He might also have made it through, but for some reason… he didn't run. Instead, he practically lifted his prisoner off her feet, holding her firmly with just one arm. His other arm was held out towards Sheppard, a gun aimed directly at his head. He could only have been Kolya. Every bit as soaking wet as Elizabeth, he'd obviously spent a great deal of time outside in the rain. Besides, who else would risk getting shot at just for a quick confrontation?

"You're not going anywhere," Sheppard assured him confidently, kneeling close to the ground while gripping his P-90. Kolya slowly dragged Elizabeth backwards – they were dangerously close to the gate. But the Genii still hesitated, staring at Sheppard challengingly… Perhaps hatefully would be the more accurate term. After all, he had killed about sixty men that day. Kolya wanted to memorize his face. To learn everything he could about it. So that he wouldn't forget…

Sheppard's patience wore thin. "I will shoot you if you don't let her go." Elizabeth stared at him in abject terror; he'd never seen that look on her face before. Trying not to focus on it, for it was definitely a distraction, he concentrated solely on her captor.

There was no longer any doubt… The expression twisted across Kolya's face was one of absolute hate. Pure, irrefutable, indescribable, absolute hate. "And risk hurting Dr. Weir?" He continued inching his way backwards, slowly, while no doubt waiting for a chance to shoot and kill his adversary. His weapon, however, was definitely obsolete when compared to the beauty held in Sheppard's hands.

He cautiously stood up, not taking his eyes off Kolya. "I'm not aiming at her." It was time to finish this. Squeezing the trigger, he fired a single bullet, which buried itself deeply into Kolya's shoulder. The man was thrown backwards, gasping as he inadvertently dropped his hostage and fell through the gate.

Elizabeth quickly struggled to get to her feet, but she didn't quite make it. Landing back on the ground, she glanced over her shoulder in fear, as if trying to reassure herself that Kolya was truly gone. Sheppard found that he needed similar reassurance, and lowered his gun only once he'd caught his breath.

By then, Elizabeth managed to rise. She was soaked to the skin, and there might have been tears in her eyes, but they would have been impossible to distinguish from ordinary rainwater. Remembering himself, Sheppard started running towards her while turning his head towards Ford. "Find Teyla and Beckett! Make sure that's all of them!" He paused in front of the terrified woman. "Sorry about that, I had to, uh…"

She was staring at him with a haunted expression. Her face was deathly pale. He'd just fired a gun in her direction, possibly killing a man in whose arms she'd been held… She no longer appeared to be the powerful, capable leader she'd been earlier that afternoon. Instead, she looked lost. Having believed her to be dead, Sheppard had turned into a killer. A bloodthirsty killer. But right now… she looked like she was the one most affected by Kolya's cruelty. Not him. And that thought terrified Sheppard. "Are you okay?"

She exhaled deeply and shook her head. "No." There was a flash of lightning outside, and roaring thunder, which immediately reminded the Major of the oncoming storm. It was upon them now, and if McKay didn't get those shields up, it would completely and utterly destroy Atlantis. The night wasn't over yet.

But then… the Stargate had shut down, and the Genii were gone. The storm inside the city had past, as all storms eventually must. No tempest lasted forever, and they'd all do well to remember that. He reached for her hand. "You will be. Come on!" Together, they turned and made their way up the stairs towards the control room, where he was confident they'd ride out this second storm in the comfort of _their _Atlantean home.

**ooooooo**

Thanks for reading, and don't you dare forget to send a review! LOL!


	2. Acastus Kolya

**Author's Note: **I wasn't entirely sure I wanted to write this chapter. I mean, I was definitely debating it, but I couldn't decide… But, as luck would have it, I received something of a suggestion, which pretty much made up my mind. So here it is! I hope you all enjoy it! LOL!

**ooooooo**

"Commander's here."

Leaning over towards the communications device held up to him by Dr. Ladon Radim, Commander Acastus Kolya of the Genii braced himself for yet another round against yet another would-be Atlantean. A rather well known would-be Atlantean, to be more specific; while Kolya had not had the pleasure of making Major John Sheppard's acquaintance himself, he had definitely heard reports about the man from Chief Cowen. He was a soldier who under absolutely no circumstances could be taken lightly.

"He's just standing there, sir," one of the officers stationed by the grounding rods presently informed the Commander, who was quick to reply.

"Hold your position. Do not approach until he is finished."

"Yes sir."

Major Sheppard might have proven himself to be a fairly competent soldier, particularly since having hidden the precious C4 that Cowen so dearly desired, but as of that moment, he was behaving exactly as he'd been told to. After all, like Drs. Weir and McKay, Kolya's two hostages, the man was in no position whatsoever to put up much of a fight. He was considerably outnumbered, alone, and eager to ensure the safety of his friends, which made him persuadable and more than just a little convenient. What with the storm approaching, if Atlantis was to be seized, it must first be protected – and Sheppard would see to it that it was.

"Use lethal force only if necessary."

Sora started at that command, staring at her superior in dismay. "You told him he would be unharmed!" She was a good soldier. She put up more of a fight when they trained together than most of his other men. But that still didn't change the fact that she was young and new in this world of constant, unending battle. She had much yet to learn.

Kolya glanced up and fixed his two hard, unyielding eyes on her large, brown ones. Looking at her, anyone else might have mistaken her for a child's doll. They might even have treated her as such, for that matter. But not him. "Let's hope he doesn't put up much of a fight." Sora blinked, averting her gaze as she absorbed that remark. One way or the other, Sheppard would be apprehended. After all, he was one of the "supplies" that they had come to collect in the first place. Kolya could still remember the conversation he had had with Dr. Weir shortly after arriving in Atlantis.

_"Why are you doing this?"_

_"You're in possession of supplies we vitally need. Hand them over without difficulty, and we'll leave peacefully."_

_"Or?"_

_"We're both intelligent people, Dr. Weir. I'm sure there's no need for me to demonstrate once again the strength of my resolve."_

_"Which supplies did you have in mind?"_

_"All of your stores of the C4 explosive, all of your medical supplies, the Wraith data device you stole from my people, and one of your ships."_

_"Is that all?"_

_"No. Where is Major Sheppard?"_

The look she had given him then… Kolya could not understand why she had seemed so surprised. Sheppard had made a fool of his people. He would be presented to Chief Cowen dead or alive – though alive was preferable. If what Dr. Weir had told him about the Ancient Gene was true, there was a very good possibility that the ship he had demanded would not fly for anyone else.

"He's stopped," the officer on the other end sounded slightly perplexed – and slightly alarmed. "He's not at the control panel anymore. He's looking around." Dr. McKay glanced at Dr. Weir anxiously; if Sheppard wasn't doing what he'd been told to do, it might very well mean he was planning something else.

"Hold your fire," Kolya spoke steadily. It wasn't yet time to risk injuring the man. Besides, the two officers stationed out there were both as new at the game as Sora. They shouldn't have been there in the first place… Kolya could sense that, if faced with even a slight deviation from the plan, they'd be more than willing to take necessary precautions rather than attempt holding their positions. They weren't a strike force yet, as much as Cowen liked to think that they were, and Kolya would much rather keep this whole operation as closely resembling a regular reconnaissance mission as was feasibly possible, so he willed them not to fire. Not to start a needless confrontation.

"Those control panels are pretty fragile," Dr. McKay sounded urgent, catching both Kolya and Ladon's attention. "You might not want to do-" The scientist's guard took a step forward and grabbed the arm Kolya had bloodied with his knife. Dr. McKay gasped as pain no doubt tore all the way up to his shoulder. Kolya regarded them both coldly before looking back at the communications device Ladon still held out for him.

When the shooting started, the Commander found himself holding his breath, as shameful as it was. He was a seasoned veteran, trained to be firm, detached, and impassive. What with the Wraith, stoicism had become essential to one's peace of mind, and he had learned that lesson a long time ago. But despite that… those officers had never been on a real mission before. Not like this, anyway. And Kolya didn't…

"Let me tell you what you did wrong here, Kolya!" When Sheppard's voice sounded over the comm., the Genii Commander felt his heart stop and his blood turn to ice. "A. You just lost two of your men!" Dr. McKay glanced at Dr. Weir in what Kolya took to be astonishment. The woman herself was listening with as indifferent an expression as could be desired from a leader. Kolya straightened his back and took a deep breath, summoning forth a like expression on his face. Indifference was what was required of him, especially now. "B. You damaged the switch before I could separate the grounding rods, which I'm sure you're gonna get an earful from McKay for!" Kolya glanced at the scientist and, sure enough, the man's astonishment had turned to horror. "And C. You lost all of what little credibility you had with me!"

"D'you have any idea of how big a setback that is?" Dr. McKay demanded in his grating voice. Kolya couldn't think listening to it. In all honesty, he was having trouble thinking anyway, and found himself pacing as he tried. "I may not even be able to activate the shield. I mean I can't possibly…" His guard reached forward to grab his arm again, but this time, Dr. McKay resisted, despite the pain it caused him. "Get off me!"

There wasn't anything for it. Kolya had lost his focus, and found himself speaking redundancies into the comm. "You killed two of my men." They shouldn't have been there… Cowen…

"I guess we're even!" Sheppard taunted, which sent a hot wave of fury searing through the Commander's veins. He ripped a gun from the holster at his side, staring darkly at his two hostages.

"I don't like even." He shouldn't be taking it personally… but those men were hardly old enough to merit a position on any team, much less his. They were kids…

"I'm not finished yet!" Sheppard objected, no doubt guessing where this conversation of theirs was currently headed.

"Neither am I." He glanced from Dr. McKay to Dr. Weir. If he did this, Sheppard would not cooperate with him again. To save Atlantis, he would need the scientist. "Say goodbye to Dr. Weir." He lowered the comm. and aimed the gun, noting the terror in her eyes which she was obviously fighting to control. Not that it would do her any good. A woman's fear held absolutely no sway over him.

"The city has a self-destruct button!" Sheppard shouted over the comm. There was desperation in his voice, and Kolya knew he was running out of options. It wasn't always wise to back one's enemy into a corner, but sometimes it was painfully satisfying. "You hurt her, I'll activate it! Nobody'll get Atlantis!"

Sheppard would have to do better than that. "Even if it exists, Major, you need at least two senior personnel to activate it." He kept his gaze fixed on Dr. Weir. "And I'm about to take one of them out of the equation."

"Kolya?" He didn't answer. He lowered the comm. once again. "KOLYA?" The uncertainty and apprehension in Sheppard's voice was palpable. He cared about this woman very, very much. If he had only known that sooner… "I'll give you a ship!" He'd grown desperate. Defeated. But it was too late. "I'll fly it out of here for you myself!" His offer still wasn't good enough. "KOLYA! Don't do this!"

"How is this going to help you get what you want?" Dr. Weir demanded, her voice surprisingly steady. Not at all like the city's sole defender's.

"Sheppard put you in this position, not me," Kolya stated coolly, without once blinking an eye. At that moment, the only thought in his mind was… that he'd demonstrated to Dr. Weir that he was not to be trifled with. Apparently the defiant Major needed a similar demonstration.

"You can't do this, this is crazy, you need her…" Dr. McKay's voice was a breathless whisper as he positioned himself between the gun and the woman. Not even Kolya could deny it took the man a lot of courage – a lot more than he would have believed the scientist to possess.

"He's right, Commander," Sora contributed, sounding tense. She didn't like the idea of supporting two hostages, and she'd already questioned Kolya's authority more than once since they'd arrived. She knew she was walking a fine line, and Kolya found himself double-checking the comm., making sure it was switched off. Better if Sheppard didn't realize there was dissension here…

"I'm not kidding, there are codes required to activate the shields!" Dr. McKay raised his voice to its more familiar level. "Codes that only she knows! You can't do it without her!" Kolya considered those words, and as he did so, the scientist's face grew pale. He slowly raised his arms, mistaking the Commander's silence for something more sinister. "Well, you can't do this without me either…" He smiled sheepishly in his panic. "I mean… we're a packaged deal. You take us out of the equation and… and, and, and you don't have an endgame!" He couldn't let it rest. "Granted, that's a… that's a chess term. I'm… I'm…" He seemed to be trying not to hyperventilate. "My point is, we're the only ones who can fix the Grounding Station. We're the only ones who can activate the shields. We're the only ones who can solve problems that I can't even think of yet!" Kolya had already known he'd need Dr. McKay for this… but Weir, too? "You kill either one of us and you don't get what you want! That's how important we are!" Kolya lowered the gun. "It's import-!"

"Rodney," Dr. Weir looked anxious. McKay's panic was rubbing off on her, and she seemed more than eager to calm his nerves as best she could. "Rodney, he gets it."

The man nevertheless still looked mortified. "Oh…"

Kolya turned away from them, ignoring Dr. Weir and the short exchange she had with Sora. They were assets. Dr. McKay had made that much perfectly clear, as much as the Genii didn't like it. Now, not only did he have to deal with the storm outside, but also with an extremely different storm inside. Sheppard was still waiting for a response at the Grounding Station – that was, if he hadn't already started making his way back to the control room. If he was desperate enough, he might do something foolish to try rescuing Dr. Weir. She was important to him… and that would make him unpredictable. Better to just crush his spirits now and remind him that he was as much in Genii hands as was Dr. McKay. Just because he had killed two fine men did not mean that Cowen still wouldn't want him. If anything… Cowen would just want him that much more.

Kolya walked out of the room and towards Dr. Weir's office, where he sat down to rest his feet. Cowen… He honestly didn't know who he resented more at that particular moment. Sheppard might have killed his men, but were it not for Cowen… they wouldn't have even been there. Were it not for Cowen, a handful of Genii soldiers would not have attempted going up against the Wraith with only Sheppard and his team's help, and Sora's father would still be alive. None of this would have happened. Cowen could just as easily have been blamed for the whole situation as anyone else. Still… Kolya had his orders. And he would carry them out to their fullest.

Holding up his comm., he contacted his faceless antagonist. "Major Sheppard… How's this for credibility? Weir is dead." The lie would come with implications. There wouldn't be any doubt about that.

And sure enough: "I am going to kill you."

A storm had started outside. Kolya could hear the wind and the rain. And he could hear the utter fury in Sheppard's voice. A second storm… A fiercer storm… But it didn't matter. "Maybe," he acknowledged. "Stay out of my way." He would not stand for anymore of Sheppard's defiance. "Or McKay will join her."

**ooooooo**

They were not ready for this. It was his team's first real mission, and they were up against a man like Major Sheppard! A man who apparently did not take very well to enemy command. Kolya had told him that Weir had been killed, hoping it would prove to be incentive enough for him to give up. But, instead, Sheppard was fighting harder than ever before, probably more out of retaliation now than anything else. The worst part about it was that he knew exactly what he was doing. Cowen had not exaggerated on that front; Sheppard was extremely, extremely good at his job. He might have been fighting by himself, but he was in familiar territory, up against opponents who just could not compete with him. He was in an entirely different league! Which meant that… the situation had changed. Drastically.

Three more were dead. Three more good, strong men. Sheppard had killed them. And he had disabled not just one power generator, but two! Kolya had herded his prisoners outside to the third Grounding Station so that Dr. McKay could fix whatever damage had been done there and separate the grounding rods so that the city could be saved. It was raining hard, and the thrashing waves of the ocean did absolutely nothing for any of their nerves. All secondary systems within the control room had been cut off. His men couldn't track Sheppard anymore, and would therefore have been trying to fight blindly if Kolya hadn't sent them to fix the two generators and guard the city's remaining three. As for that second generator… power to the Grounding Station had been rendered inoperative. And without power, Dr. McKay claimed to be unable to fix anything whatsoever. It would seem Sheppard actually wanted Atlantis destroyed…

It was very childish. No sensible adult would ever go out of his way to eliminate such a wondrous city just because it was being taken away from him. The waste of it all was incomprehensible. Sheppard must have been bluffing – though Kolya wouldn't deny it was a very good bluff. Had he fallen for it, he might have decided to leave with what he'd come for – sans Sheppard himself. But Kolya had no intention of going anywhere, _especially _without the Major.

That was why he had sent for reinforcements. Chief Cowen had insisted he come here with his would-be strike force, and so he had. But now that the city itself was all but in his grasp, one man threatened everything. And so he demanded that a full company be dispatched. He'd done what Cowen had asked for. Now, the least his leader could do was assist him in these final stages of the siege. Sheppard would be overwhelmed. He'd be defeated. Captured. And then Kolya could go home and try to forget about this disaster of a mission.

Five of his men… all dead…

"Reinforcements are arriving now, Commander," Ladon's voice sounded over the comm., and Kolya breathed a silent sigh of relief. It was about time…

"Have them secure Stargate operations and report back to me." He glanced over the control panel towards his prisoners, who were huddling together in a futile attempt to keep warm. Maybe now he would allow Dr. McKay to take shelter inside while they waited for the power to be turned back on. After all, Major Sheppard couldn't save them now. It would be impossible!

At least… that's what he had thought. For no sooner had he stepped towards the scientist with the generous offer on the tip of his tongue than the comm. came bursting back to life with Sora's desperate, almost terrified voice on the other end. "Sheppard has raised the gate shield!"

The gate shield. The reason why they hadn't tried a raid like this sooner. The gate shield… that prevented intruders from storming Atlantis on pain of… on pain of death. Kolya's heart skipped several beats at the implications of such a distress call. He held up his comm. "Shut it down! Turn it off!"

"I don't know how!" Sora shouted back. "Ladon is unconscious!" Somehow, Sheppard had attacked the Genii scientist and raised the shield without getting himself killed. The incompetence of his men knew no bounds, but there wasn't any time for that. Cowen was sending a full company! If that shield wasn't lowered, they would all lose their lives! Already five had been killed by Sheppard. How many more?

He turned towards Dr. McKay. "Tell her the procedure!" The fact that Sheppard would ultimately stand no chance whatsoever against sixty Genii had not escaped the scientist. Looking at him now, Kolya could definitely detect traces of encouragement forming in the prisoner's eyes. The shield was an unexpected twist in Sheppard's favor which Dr. McKay obviously appreciated. His appreciation, however, quickly melted back into terror as Kolya, furious, advanced towards him.

"I don't know what he's done," he asserted, backing cautiously away from the Genii. He didn't have anywhere to go, however, for, on that balcony, there was nothing separating him from the violent waves of the ocean beneath the city but a single railing. Having reached it, he could do naught but cringe as Kolya towered over him.

"TELL HER!"

"He must have entered his own personal command code!"

Kolya grabbed the scientist by his clothes and pushed him back against the side of the railing. He might easily have thrown the man completely over it, killing him mercilessly, and a large part of him was sorely tempted to do so. Sixty men! "WHAT IS IT?"

"I DON'T KNOW!"

Rain was pouring on his face. The wind was rampant. The storm was closing in on the city, and all Kolya could think about was how desperately he needed to break something. Preferably Major Sheppard, but since he wasn't here right now…

"ONLY SHEPPARD WOULD KNOW IT!" Dr. Weir was at his side, shouting to be heard over the angry tempest. Unlike Dr. McKay, she did not look in the least bit pleased about what the Major had done.

"TRUST ME," Dr. McKay was shaking fiercely, obviously cold and afraid. He wasn't a fool. Even if Sheppard wasn't overwhelmed at present, he wasn't around to protect his friends from Kolya's wrath. "I'M NOT THAT BRAVE! I WOULD HELP YOU IF I COULD!"

Taking a deep breath, the Genii Commander looked back at Dr. Weir. "You have command codes!" It was more of a question than a stated fact. She could do it. She had to be able to do it! For the sake of sixty men! But the expression on her face said otherwise. The expression on her face said it was too late.

"It's no use," Sora's voice sounded over the comm. It sounded so helpless. Hopeless. "It's over. The gate has shut down… There are no more men coming."

Kolya exhaled slowly, glancing up at the sky. There was so much rain he couldn't see anything. He couldn't even make out the storm's black clouds. "How many men made it?"

"Five," the bitterness broke through. She sounded like a miserable little girl, and had every reason to. "Five of sixty."

Kolya closed his eyes in despair. It couldn't be possible… It wasn't real… He told himself it wasn't… Excuses could be made for the inadequacy of his team. They had been sent to the field without first completing their training. But the loss of an entire company in under five minutes? All because of one man? It was inexcusable. And Kolya already knew that he'd be blamed for it, despite the fact that it was Cowen's lack of judgment which had brought him out here in the first place!

Once again, he felt his self-control slipping… surrendering to pure fury… He gave into it, glaring at Dr. McKay with a thirst for blood. The next thing he knew, Dr. Weir was hanging onto him with all the strength she could muster, fighting no doubt to keep him from tossing the man over the rail to a very watery grave. Dr. McKay himself was red in the face, staring back at his assailant as bravely as he possibly could.

"YOU STILL NEED ME IF YOU WANT THIS CITY!" he shouted. "YOU STILL NEED BOTH OF US!"

If he wanted the city? For the love of god, he didn't want the damn city! He didn't want any part of it! The only reason he came to this forsaken place was because he'd been ordered to by the most incompetent man in the entire universe! He didn't care anymore! He'd sooner leave it for the damn Wraith!

Fifty-five men…? Plus the five Sheppard had already killed…? Sheppard…

Dr. Weir was still hanging onto him. She weighed almost nothing… Kolya took several deep breaths, gritting his teeth as he got a hold of himself. At this point, he had no choice but to take the city. Sheppard would not be allowed to get away with a crime like this. Kolya would finish what he'd started so that sixty lives would not be in vain. He'd take Atlantis. And then he would savor the feeling of warm blood on both of his hands as he killed Major John Sheppard himself.

Releasing Dr. McKay roughly, Kolya turned and stalked back towards the Grounding Station's control panel. It did not take long at all before he received yet another message from Sora. "Commander? Ladon thinks he can have the gate fixed."

Well, that was something, at least. Ladon could always be counted on – unless he was getting his face punched in by a defiant Atlantean. Kolya continued taking deep breaths; he could not afford to lose control like that again! Five men had managed to make it through the gate, which replaced the five Sheppard had already killed. If they were going to make it through this without losing anymore lives, Kolya needed to keep himself disciplined.

_Athor… _

An unbidden image of a close, close friend took root in his mind. They had known each other since childhood, and though they hadn't exactly been keeping in touch lately, what with the Wraith's recent awakening, they still considered each other brothers. And his "brother" had…

"Did Athor's son make it through the gate?"

"I'm sorry?" Whatever response Sora might have been expecting, it certainly wasn't this.

Kolya took yet another deep breath. "His name is Idos. Did he make it?" _I've never asked for anything… Not once… Please._

"No sir." She had empathy enough to sound regretful.

So then Idos was dead. The storm was drawing close, and Kolya found himself staring out at its approach almost enviously. It was allowed to go on its rampage without fear of personal loss, and those who got in its path knew that if they didn't move, they would be crushed. The storm was allowed that, and there was nothing any of them could do to put a stop to it. Yes, they could raise a shield and take shelter from it, but they could not stop it. Kolya wished he had such liberty. "Over sixty men? Killed?"

Sheppard… was a monster.

"Defending his home and his people, Commander," Sora reminded him, reasonably. "As we would." Not a monster, then. At least, no more so than Kolya was himself.

"When can more reinforcements be sent?"

"It will take some time," Sora stated, for once calmer than he was. "Perhaps an hour."

An hour? An _hour?_ "UNACCEPTABLE!" he bellowed over the wind. How could it possibly take that long?

"Yes, commander, it _is _unacceptable!" Sora agreed, no longer calm, but every bit as agitated as he felt. "Because, by then, we will be in the full force of the storm." She didn't even know the half of it. She was safe inside the control room while he was standing out here in its midst.

Dr. McKay raised an arm and pointed towards the horizon, where flashes of lightning could be seen dancing almost gracefully through the clouds. "Probably sooner!" Kolya glanced at him and then at Dr. Weir. She wasn't even half his size, nor McKay's. And though she wasn't one to complain, she looked like she was freezing. There was definitely fear in her eyes. Whatever Sheppard was planning, he could tell by her expression alone that it would be drastic and unforgiving. It would probably result in even more deaths. Their deaths, too. Not just the Genii's. And that frightened her… although she would never willingly admit it.

He needed to do something. The gate was shut down. With the generators disabled, Dr. McKay couldn't fix the control panel. Without the control panel, the grounding rods couldn't be separated. If the grounding rods weren't separated, there wouldn't be any shield. Without a shield, the storm would utterly obliterate them. It all boiled down to one man… one man that Kolya would sooner kill than negotiate with. But there wasn't anything he could do about it at that point. Right now, he just needed to save lives. And so… he once again held up the comm.

"Major Sheppard, I have a proposition for you." The words tasted sour. Extremely sour. He nearly suffocated on them.

It took Sheppard a few moments to respond, but when he did, there was a mixture of disgust and satisfaction in his voice. "Kolya, I'm having a hard time keeping up… what's the score again?" Score. Sheppard was keeping score… Poetic justice, perhaps? After all, he still believed Dr. Weir had died because a similar one. Kolya scowled.

"My men have informed me that, not only have you disabled some crucial generators, but you've stolen key components that make it impossible for them to be restored."

"Yeah, I did that," Sheppard sounded pleased with himself. He sounded smug and satisfied.

"There are two flaws in your plan," Kolya informed him, just as he'd been informed by him earlier that day of his own mistakes. Sheppard, however, wasn't in the least bit fazed.

"Always open to constructive criticism."

Kolya could feel his skin crawling in distaste. The man had no subtlety. The man had no dignity. He had just ended the lives of sixty men and it would seem that he hadn't even broken a sweat. Kolya would kill him. "One. The assumption I would believe you would rather destroy the city than let it fall to us is childish."

"Doesn't sound like me."

"Second," Kolya did not miss a beat. Something needed to be said that would catch the Major's attention and remind him of his place now that the city was in Genii hands. "If and when I determine Atlantis unsalvageable, Drs. Weir and McKay become obsolete."

That did it. For a good, long second, Sheppard was left speechless. There was something positively gratifying about that. Kolya had long since come to the conclusion that Major Sheppard was not someone to underestimate. Cowen wanted him, yes, but he didn't care if he got him dead or alive. After all this, it would definitely have to be dead. Sheppard was dangerous. He was cocky and insolent and brutal. Kolya knew all this… and so getting the best of the Atlantean with such news that left him speechless was, in a word, sweet.

"Weir's alive?"

Kolya smirked. "Dr. McKay was able to make a strong case for keeping her alive." The two were both huddled together on the steps that led from the control panel of the Grounding Station down to the balcony below it. When they heard the Genii's words, they both glanced at him in bafflement. Neither one of them had realized that Kolya lied to Sheppard about Dr. Weir's survival. Neither one of them had known that much of this conflict had turned into an all-out struggle for vengeance – on both men's parts.

"Let me talk to her!" Sheppard demanded. Kolya considered the request for just a brief moment, and then stalked over towards the woman while holding out the comm. She rose quickly and spoke into it without hesitation.

"Sheppard! We're both here!"

He answered softly, in a tone that could not hide his deep, deep relief. "It's good to hear your voice." He _definitely_ cared about this woman. He spoke with such audible emotion that he almost sounded like an actual man instead of the killer that he was.

"Yeah, it's good to hear," Dr. Weir managed to agree with him before Kolya stormed away, giving her no time whatsoever to say anything else.

"We have less than one hour before the storm hits full force," he spoke swiftly into the comm. There truly was no time to lose, and he once again required Sheppard's cooperation. If he could twist the Major's arm fiercely enough – and he was fairly confident now that he could – this mess might just be salvageable. "If the power is not returned to Grounding Station Three within the next ten minutes, Dr. Weir dies."

"Again, you mean?" The question was dripping with skeptical disbelief. But this time Kolya was serious. So serious that there was already unmistakable triumph in his response.

"Her death will buy you another ten minutes. After which, should the power still be out, Dr. McKay dies. We will then leave with what we can, and the city will be destroyed." No compromises.

"Well, that's not enough time!"

No compromises. Kolya spoke severely, and almost tauntingly. "If you don't mind destroying Atlantis, stay where you are for the next twenty minutes. Starting now."

**ooooooo**

Sheppard had played his part well, but in the end, it had made no difference whatsoever. Though he had returned power to the generator, allowing Dr. McKay time enough to separate the grounding rods, the shield had still not activated. Now, there was massive flooding in various parts of the city and, within minutes, all of Atlantis would be crushed. Dr. Weir was right. It was no longer worth the risk. They needed to get out.

"Open the Stargate," Kolya commanded, glancing quickly at what was left of his team in the middle of the city's control room. "Start evacuating the remaining men." It was pathetic, really. Not even Sora would make it out of there alive. Having discovered that, out of nowhere, the Athosian girl, Teyla Emmagan, had appeared in the city, she'd gone seeking vengeance. There wasn't time enough for them to wait! In all likelihood, she would die alongside the one responsible for her father's demise. It was yet another injustice.

"You're making the right decision," Dr. Weir presently informed him, having regained quite a bit of the authority she'd lost when turned into a hostage.

Kolya, however, only stared at her cruelly. "You're coming with us." If he couldn't take Sheppard… he'd just have to take some compensation.

"What?" Dr. Weir stared at him in outright horror even as Dr. McKay glanced up in shock. They must have thought he'd leave them there to die. In fact, from the terror in their expressions, he could safely assume they'd been hoping he'd leave them there to die. Not that he could blame them…

"You'll both serve the Genii as payment for what you've done," he told them fiercely, knowing that their lives, even if they weren't killed, were essentially over.

"For what we've done?" Dr. McKay cried out despairingly, his objection justifiable. After all, neither one of them were responsible for this disaster. Major Sheppard was! But by that point, Kolya truly didn't care. He watched impassively as two of his men dragged the prisoners out of the control room. They would see if he wasn't every bit as monstrous and unforgiving as Sheppard had proven to be.

Following them out of the room towards the gate, where his men were already carrying stretchers fully loaded with supplies back to their world, Kolya regretted his decision only by the headache Dr. McKay was proving still to be.

"SERIOUSLY, THIS IS A BAD IDEA! YOU SAW WHAT HAPPENED TO MY LAST PLAN! THIS IS NOT WHAT YOU-!"

A loud blast of gunfire interrupted the scientist without even the slightest hint of a warning. One Genii crashed heavily to the floor, dead before his body so much as hit the ground. Moving on instinct, Dr. McKay ducked down low and scrambled for safety, but Dr. Weir, obviously not used to being the middle of a crossfire, hesitated. Her guard had released her to turn and retaliate, as most of Kolya's men did – with one or two exceptions, who fled through the gate seeking shelter – but the woman herself seemed to be at quite a loss. Kolya took swift advantage of that.

Crossing the short distance that separated them, he pressed her back against his chest, pinning her there with one arm. Turning fluidly, he held up his gun and, while continuing to work his way backwards towards the gate, aimed it directly at a dark haired young man. He was younger than Kolya had expected, and smaller, too. But the look on Major Sheppard's face as he knelt down on one knee, holding up a projectile weapon the likes of which Kolya had never seen before, was one of absolute hatred. The feeling was mutual.

"You're not going anywhere," Sheppard said in a voice that Kolya, by now, could have recognized in his sleep. Nevertheless, he continued to edge towards the gate with Dr. Weir in his grasp. He might easily have pulled her through with him, but instead… he found himself hesitating.

There he was. There was the man who had started this whole disastrous affair! If _he_ hadn't made a fool of Cowen… If he hadn't of resisted Kolya… so many lives could have been spared that night. Including one life… Idos… His best friend's son…

Hate coursed through his veins. It burned like a fire. It tore at his sanity. It nearly made him see red. They were inevitably destined to oppose each other. But this… it was so much stronger than mere opposition. Kolya wanted to kill him. He wanted to present his head to Chief Cowen. He wanted to tear him apart!

"I will shoot you if you don't let her go," Sheppard informed the Genii Commander, who might have laughed at him for such a measly threat if he hadn't been too consumed by his fury to manage it.

"And risk hurting Dr. Weir?" he challenged, drawing closer and closer to the gate. The woman in his clutches froze, petrified, for the look on Sheppard's face was definitely one of murder. But there wasn't anything he could do. Kolya perceived how much he cared for the woman, and, at a distance such as this, not even the best of Genii marksmen would have guaranteed accuracy.

Sheppard, however, rose to his feet, without once taking his eyes off Kolya. Accuracy did not seem to be much of a concern to him. "I'm not aiming at her."

The shot rang out before the Genii could fully process the meaning behind such a bold statement. The velocity of the bullet's impact as it dug its way into his shoulder was so great that he inadvertently dropped his hostage while being propelled backwards… directly towards the gate. No wonder accuracy hadn't concerned Sheppard… He must have had it perfected years ago…

For within seconds Kolya was on the ground…

On a completely different planet…

With a bleeding shoulder…

But no Dr. Weir.

And no Major Sheppard.

And no Atlantis.

More than sixty Genii were dead.

All because of one man.

One man!

Just one…

**ooooooo**

Well, there you go! This will probably be the last chapter, so I hope everyone remembers to review! Thanks for reading! LOL!


End file.
